Blood roses
Poisonous sulfuric gases filled the air. Here and there, pockmark and craters made by falling meteor and ancient volcanic eruption littered the landscape. Wind gushing in from every direction but it wasn't a wind that brought respite from the harsh temperature, rather it complemented it, making everything much hotter than before. The fog that came out from the bubbling craters, big and small envelope everything making it difficult to see what ever it is in front of you. If there was indeed hell, this was it.
And yet, here stand a man, with a small army of his own. Staring into the distance, his furrowed brow showed that he was thinking hard at the moment. Scanning, observing and detecting everything around him. For it was the dream that brought him here. A dream of a long lost love. And the promise that they both will be reunited once more.
He signaled his men to follow. Together they jogged through the harsh landscape. It wasn't easy. Even with the eye goggles, peripheral vision was still pretty much limited. And they have to be careful on where to set their foot upon for there were so many lava trap scattered everywhere. On the surface, it may look like ordinary lava that already harden and safe to be walked on but many of it was just an illusion. Most of the time the thickness of the hardened lava was so thin, some even paper thin, that you will literally fell down into the molten lava below it if you were not careful. Thankfully, thermal scanner did help in avoiding someone from becoming a fully cook barbeque.
After nearly a couple of hours of jogging, they finally reach their destination which the rim of a really huge crater. But it wasn't the crater that they were interested in. Rather a huge hole that bored exactly at the center of the crater. Using a pair of binoculars, the leader of the pack peers into the crater.
"Nydus tunnel. Exactly what I was looking for," he muttered to himself. "Kowalski, scan the area. See if the host had prepared a welcoming party for some uninvited guest that is us."
"Working sir," Kowalski replied. After a few moment, he said, "All clear, Captain Raynor. No zerg bio signature detected throughout the area."
"Good. Lets go inside towards that hole."
Together, all eleven of them slide carefully down the crater. Once they reach for that hole, Raynor gave the signal for his men to spread and keep on a look out while he himself peered down the whole. At nearly 15 meters wide and 12 meter deep, it was clearly not naturally occurred. After considering for a moment, Raynor turned towards his men.
"Alright. Kowalski, William, LeRouge and Boyd, the four of you will follow me. The rest of you stay here. Make sure that our escape path is clear should anything unforeseen happens. If the five of us didn't come back within an hour, get your ass as fast as you can to the dropship and get the hell off this planet. Am I clear on that?"
"Crystal, Captain," one of his men replied, "But I do hope it won't come to that."
"Yeah me too. Now the four of you hear me out. This is simply a recon mission. We get in, take a look and then we get out. Sound simple enough but we're talking about the zerg here so anything could happen. I guess I don't have to tell you what you should do."
"You don't have to tell us, captain," replied Boyd. "We know what to expect."
"Good. I hope I can count on all of you. Lets go."
Together, all five of them rappelled down the hole, giving a soft tud upon landing. Around the hole, there were three tunnels that leads away from the hole.
"Which one captain?" asked Kowalski.
Raynor looked from tunnel to tunnel. Two of the tunnel would lead them anywhere else on on the planet and one of them would lead them right to their main objective, that is the Zerg Hive. He then took out what happened to be a long range scanner. He began to scan each of the tunnel opening.
"Here," he said, "this would be it," Raynor pointed to the tunnel on his left side.
"How do you know captain?" asked Kowalski.
"Because it was crawling with the zerg."
"What? You didn't mean to go in there, did you?" asked Kowalski apparently surprised by his boss decision.
"I'm going in. And I need you guys to some along. Remember that some of our comrades need help, Kowalski. And its our job to save them." With that, Raynor went trudging in through the tunnel with his men grudgingly followed behind.
The tunnel was indeed very dark but for the fear of being found, they had to use infra red goggles instead of normal lighting to see ahead. As foreboding as it can be, the tunnel was virtually littered with carcasses. After a few minutes of walking, they finally heard the tell tale of zerg close by. Readying their weapons, they continued slowly until they finally reach one really huge cavern, or rather a chamber. But unlike any other cavern they had seen, this one had an organic feel to it. The wall and ceiling wasn't made of rock but rather a thick and slimy structure of flesh and skin. The ground was covered by purplish goo, not unlike the zerg creep they had seen at Mar Sara and many other places. At the far side of the cavern lies several worm like creature, throbbing and pulsating every now and then. Crab like creature running here and there, like a very loyal servant attending to every demands of its masters. This must be their breeding ground, Raynor thought to himself. At the center of the chamber, there was a cocoon. And to that cocoon that Raynor fixed his eyes on to.
"Where're you going, captain?" asked Kowalski seeing his captain walk slowly towards the cocoon. Raynor put a finger to his mouth and signaled his men to take cover then continued to walk towards the cocoon. As Raynor slowly walked towards it, he felt something different. He felt the attraction, a calling from that cocoon. It was so intense that he became oblivious to his surrounding. He virtually didn't realize that a few of the zergling was following him from behind. Yet strangely enough, they didn't attack him.
The thing that was in front of him pulsated every now and then. From within, Raynor could clearly see a silhouette of a human being albeit with a couple of more limbs. Despise with what he saw, he couldn't help himself but to reach out and touch the so called chrysalis. As if right on cue, the chrysalis began to vibrate violently. The creature within it began to stir, twisting here and there as if trying desperately to escape from the drowning confinement of the chrysalis itself. Raynor simply stood back and watch awe of something that he or anyone else other than the zerg had never seen before. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a booming and echoing voice was heard throughout the cavern.
"Behold my children, for the time of our glory is near. Behold and observe the birth of my greatest creation ever. The one that will bring forth the wrath of the swarm. Let our enemy cowered under the trampling of our feet."
Raynor suddenly notice that hundreds perhaps thousands of zerg creatures already converging around the now vibrating cocoon with him at the center of it all. But the zerg were seems to be more occupied with the cocoon itself rather than him.
Suddenly, the skin of the chrysalis was tore open by a pair of spiky bones. Like a really sharp knife, it cut through the skin so easily as if the skin was nothing more than a sheet of a really thin paper. Slimy fluid oozes out everywhere wetting the surrounding ground and outcome a creature. Menacing looking, and yet uncommonly beautiful. Raynor was simply flabbergasted by what he saw. That creature was definitely a woman. Beautiful, yet full of hatred and anger. All of it seems to radiate from her like a glowing ball of light. Her body was covered with thick carapace, filling and hugging her figures accentuating every curve that she had. Her height had also increase a few millimeters. The creature's hair looked strange. Except it wasn't really hair, more like tendrils jutting out of the creature's skull. But the face. It had the Kerrigan's face.
Slowly the creature step down from what was to be her embryo. And that booming voice was heard once more.
"Arise my daughter! Arise Kerrigan! For you were my greatest creation! And you will be the greatest agent of the swarm and with that all the rage, power will be eventually be the downfall of our enemies!"
"I will oblige, father. For your wish is indeed my will," Kerrigan bowed in respect to basically nobody. Raynor looked around. Where is this voice came from, he thought.
"Let the enemy know of our wrath! Let no terrans survived!" said the booming voice once again.
Suddenly, Raynor realize that the whole flock of the zerg was looking at him with pure hatred. He readied his gun to fight back.
"Captain!"
Raynor heard a yell and turned around. He saw his men began to fire at the zerg flock. The zerg began to fight back. Hundreds of them began to pounce at his men. One by one, his men fall into gruesome death. Kowalski gave a really good fight before his head decided to leave his body for good, aided by one really friendly zergling.
Raynor tried to raised his rifle but couldn't . He looked down and saw a claw like hand was holding his rifle down. Looking up, his eyes met the gazed of a woman though her eyes were no longer emerald like. Instead it was glowing yellowish with ever changing pupil.
The other zergs, having disposed of his men, began to close in on him. Kerrigan signal them to stop. Grudgingly they obey but now with an extremely hungry look emanating from their glowing eyes.
"Leave us," Kerrigan gave the command to the zerg surrounding her. But the zerg didn't oblige. Instead they stayed there, looking hungrily at Raynor.
"I said leave us!" this time, the command was given with more authority and anger.
The other zerg cowed down and began trundling away. In less than a minute, the chamber was totally devoid of other presence with exception of the worm like things.
Raynor began to calm down. He gave up the effort to raise his weapon. Kerrigan, detecting the changes in Raynor's emotion, released her grip on Raynor's rifle.
Raynor than took a few step backward so that he can look at Kerrigan better. She was indeed taller than before. Kerrigan was once no taller than his shoulder but now, she can literally looked into Raynor's eye without so much of an effort.
"Sarah, is that really you? What have they done to you?"
"In a way. I am now so much more than I was before," Kerrigan replied at the same time looking and twisting her hand here and there. She then stop, grip her hand tightly and looked directly into Raynor's eye, "You shouldn't have come here. Jim."
"But -, but the dreams. I dreamt that you were calling to me," said Raynor.
"I was, Jim. I've called to you and Acturus for help but Acturus, he sent only Duke to reclaim me. Guess I knew now the value that he hold on to me," Kerrigan replied. Her voice was thick with emotion and resentment. Her glowing yellow eyes began to fade until it resembles the green eyes of Sarah of old. She looked away from Raynor. Sadness had clearly plastered across her face.
"Mengsk was busy building his own little empire, Sarah. He won't have time for anything or anyone else so he sent his goon here. You can imagine the surprise on Duke face when he realize that I'm still a alive," Raynor chuckled.
Kerrigan smiled slightly, "Yes I can imagine."
Raynor then walked slowly towards Kerrigan. He said, "But I'm here now, Sarah. We can get you out. We can get you somewhere safe. We can figure out how to change you back."
Kerrigan shook her head and smiled, "Its too late for that Jimmy. Can't you see? I'm one of them now. And I like what I have become. You can't imagine what's it feels like. The power. The control. Everything I never had before now within my grasp." Her skeletal wing spread out and her eyes glow much brighter as she said that.
Raynor was dumbfounded when he hear what Kerrigan had said. That's it. All his effort to save the woman he truly loved had been in vain. Kerrigan had made her choice. Probably the first ever choice she had made out of her own will. She had decided to stay with the zerg. Raynor's heart was broken once again into tiny little pieces. He had failed her just like he had failed Liddy. Tears begin to welling up in his eyes.
Kerrigan noticing the change in Raynor's emotions and tears in Raynor's eye, said nothing. In fact, she couldn't say or do anything. Her body went rigid. She knew that she had hurt Raynor with her own decision. She knew that she had hurt the only person who had never done anything wrong to her. The only person who had been honest, caring and had never used her for his own intend. Deep down, she felt regret about everything that had happened. She knew that Raynor had wanted to be with her just as much as she wanted to be with him. And she knew that feeling will haunt her for years to come.
Raynor, regaining his composure, said, "If that is indeed your choice Sarah, I will respect that. But before I go, allow me to do this very last thing. With this, I hope that you will know and understand."
Raynor began to close in on Kerrigan. Touching Kerrigan's face which was surprisingly smooth and soft despite of the zerg carapace that cover up the rest of her body, he leaned towards her and kissed her lips. A deep and emotional kiss that relay to her everything that he had felt towards her. And Kerrigan replied with a deep kiss of her own also relaying everything that she felt about him. An unspoken confession of deep love.
After a while, Raynor released her. He saw tears running down her cheeks. Tracing his fingers along her cheek, he said, "Remember this Sarah, in your darkest hour. Farewell darlin'. I hope you find whatever it is you were looking for."
Raynor turned around and began to walk towards the entrance of the chamber. At the entrance, he stopped and looked back. He saw Kerrigan was still standing there solemnly watching him. He gave a nodded and continue to walk. He stopped by the corpse of his fallen comrades and began collecting all of their dog tags. He looked at every one of it.
Kowalski, Boyd, LeRouge and William.
All of them had died in vain. And all of it due to his selfish reason. To rescue the one he loved. He felt guilty. So guilty that he wished the zerg would just do the number on him instead of letting him live. But then if they did that, probably none of the others including those onboard Hyperion would also lived.
Wiping his tears, Raynor try to search for his own strength. He finally found a new resolve. All his four men who had fallen would not died in vain. He will do the most that he can so that the rest of them could survive. He had to relay to everyone else this new threat that they were facing. Regaining his composure he then began to run as fast as he could towards the tunnel opening. Once he reached the surface, the rest of his soldier clamored around him demanding to know what had happened.
"All of them had died, including the ones we were meant to save. They were killed by the zerg. But now is not the time to grieve for we're still very much in danger. Come on. Lets get back to the dropship."
And as they ran, Raynor heard a voice. A soft whisper.
"Jim. I loved you. And my heart will always belongs to you, till the end of time."
The end.